The government has been accused of running parliament like a cross between House of Cards and Game of Thrones after Andrea Leadsom, the leader of the House of Commons, said ministers will formally respond within 12 weeks to defeats on motions raised by Labour.

Conservative backbenchers, including the former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith, are preparing to campaign against £3bn of planned cuts to in-work benefits, in a fresh sign of the pressure Theresa May faces from within her own party.